Robert Rapier

Latest articles from Robert

• Donald Trump’s Naive Views on Energy: "Just Take the Oil We Need"

  Published 22 April 2011 | viewed 13,564 times

  I am constantly amused by the views of presidential candidates on energy policy. Their views are either so disingenuous or so naive that I often…

• A Possible Solution to Sudden Oil Price Spikes

  Published 19 April 2011 | viewed 22,552 times

  One of my recent essays discussed the relationship between high oil prices and recession. Consumers who suddenly find themselves paying more for fuel are hit…

• The Vicious Circle of Oil Price Induced Recessions

  Published 12 April 2011 | viewed 10,534 times

  Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich recently warned that the U.S. is likely headed back into recession: The Economic Truth That Nobody Will Admit: We’re…

• Political Contradictions on Energy Policy: Cheap Gasoline and Carbon Emissions

  Published 06 April 2011 | viewed 7,923 times

  Energy policy frequently highlights some glaring contradictions among lawmakers. Some politicians who have railed against our dependence on petroleum and who insist we must reduce…

• What is Really Driving Gas Prices up? And What Can be Done About it?

  Published 31 March 2011 | viewed 12,510 times

  This past week I had an article published in the Washington Post called Five Myths about Gas Prices. I will discuss each particular myth in…

• What Are You Willing to Sacrifice to Give Up Nuclear Energy?

  Published 18 March 2011 | viewed 7,681 times

  After the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, someone said to me “We have to stop all offshore drilling.” My response was that…

• The Harsh Reality of Fail Safe Engineering

  Published 16 March 2011 | viewed 5,019 times

  As I have said many times, all of our energy options require trade-offs. I can’t think of any that don’t have some negative consequences and…

• Ethanol and Corrosion: What Are We Not Being Told?

  Published 11 March 2011 | viewed 10,063 times

  History is littered with examples of ideas that seemed to be good for a while, but were later discovered to have unpleasant consequences. The pharmaceutical…

• Are Electric Planes the Future of Aviation?

  Published 08 March 2011 | viewed 9,435 times

  During an average week, I will see a few ideas that at first glance appear to be a little crazy. On second glance, some of…

• The Failure of U.S. Politicians to Open electricity and Other Energy Markets

  Published 01 March 2011 | viewed 20,000 times

  Over the last century, U.S. politicians have formulated policies favoring monopolies and their affiliates and friends, while picking winners and losers, often favoring higher-cost technologies,…

• Burrowing Through the Hype: A Guide to Evaluating Renewable Energy Technology

  Published 22 February 2011 | viewed 7,879 times

  To people who follow the energy industry closely, it’s a common occurrence to come across announcements from companies proclaiming to have developed the key to…

• Natural Gas Will do More Than Renewables to Limit the World's Carbon Emissions

  Published 09 February 2011 | viewed 5,904 times

  The Economist just finished hosting an online debate on natural gas. The resolution was an interesting one: This house believes that natural gas will do…

• Ethanol Industry Moves One Step Closer to E15 Mandate

  Published 25 January 2011 | viewed 7,220 times

  This week the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the use of 15% ethanol fuel blends (E15) for 2011-2006 model year cars: EPA Grants E15 Fuel…

• The Gulf Oil Spill and Supply Side Ramifications: Get Ready for $4 Gasoline

  Published 06 January 2011 | viewed 5,288 times

  Shortly after the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, I wrote the following: BP’s Oil Rig Disaster May Bring an End to Support…

• A Look at Oil Company Subsidies

  Published 02 December 2010 | viewed 16,190 times

  Following my recent essay on the elimination of the VEETC, the major ethanol subsidy in the U.S., some ethanol supporters argued for continuing the subsidies…

• Are Ethanol Producers Exporting Taxpayer Subsidized Ethanol

  Published 30 November 2010 | viewed 14,770 times

  Ulterior Motives Behind the Ethanol Pipeline? Ethanol producers in the Midwest have lobbied for support to build a pipeline to ship their ethanol to the…

• Biofuels: Is Palm Oil a Blessing or a Curse

  Published 09 November 2010 | viewed 10,163 times

  People sometimes ask which biofuels are competitive head to head with crude oil. By competitive, I mean those that can actually compete favorably with oil…

• Rising Ethanol Prices and the Lessons to be Learned

  Published 29 September 2010 | viewed 6,518 times

  I thought it was a bit humorous recently — when corn ethanol prices dipped and were cheaper than both sugarcane ethanol and gasoline (even when…

• How to Destroy a Domestic Oil Industry: A Lesson from Hugo Chavez

  Published 28 September 2010 | viewed 7,144 times

  Hugo Chavez is putting on a clinic in Venezuela. The theme is “How to Destroy a Domestic Oil Industry.” I have warned for years that…

• Peak Oil Interview With Robert Rapier

  Published 23 September 2010 | viewed 16,380 times

  Back in June, I gave a presentation on Peak Oil at the Global Footprint Conference in Siena, Italy. Following my presentation, I was asked to…